25 More Violence

While Amon was facing against The Undying, Ven had rushed straight to Stormbringer. Before coming into contact with him, she unleashed a small and harmless gust of wind that was only strong enough to disrupt him in casting electricity upon her.

When he saw the woman that rushed towards him, Stormbringer had an ugly expression filled with discontent. He had planned everything correctly, but this newly arrived fighter meant that there were some variables he was not aware of. The gust of wind blew his blonde hair back and instead of readying his sword to parry the upcoming blow, he dove straight towards his opponent with a slash of his own.

Startled by the sudden charge of her opponent, Ven dodged to the side and avoided the attack. She was unwilling to get injured this early in the fight. Although an exchange of injuries might seem somewhat reasonable in some other contexts, she was currently surrounded by enemies and playing it safe was the better move. However, she knew that she couldn't be passive in this fight as allowing Stormbringer to cast his electricity would spell her early demise.

She started with a few probing slashes, but they were without any effect. She then tried increasing the pace of her attacks, but Stormbringer was able to keep up the pace. The downside of her fighting in such a manner was that even though she could stop Stormbringer from using his lightning augmentation, she was likewise unable to use hers. In a straightforward match, she wasn't quite sure that she could be a match for her opponent in terms of swordplay.

Although Stormbringer looked more dashing than fierce, he was still a Holy Knight. The training they received was excruciating, and only the best would be promoted to the prestigious position. Stormbringer might look young, but he was certainly well over forty, possibly even fifty. This made him at least a decade or two older than Ven, with that much more experience under his belt. Moreover, despite her superb combat abilities, Ven had initially been an intelligence operative and lacked the kind of combat experience that Stormbringer had gained from all the years he spent fighting the Ravens.

Ven was able to make up the vast difference in experience with sheer instinct, but on the long run, she knew Stormbringer would be able to turn the situation around. She had to find a way for her a cast a well-timed gust of wind and destabilize her opponent.

After a few more exchanges, she suddenly thought of the whip Amon had given her. She wasn't all that familiar with the usage of such a weapon and had wanted to keep it as a hidden ace, but Stormbringer was proving to be a more tenacious opponent than she had hoped.

Once the latter was over his initial surprise, his handsome face had regained its calm and a small smile was hanging at the side of his sensual mouth. He too could feel the inexperience behind Ven's blade, and he was waiting for her to make even the slightest mistake so he could end the fight.

Stormbringer was not impatient, and beyond his initial strike, he stopped taking risks and only waited for his opponent to falter. However, he didn't expect her to suddenly take out another handle from the belt at her waist. He was utterly flabbergasted when Ven deployed the weapon, and he saw that it was a whip.

Stormbringer knew that the Order manufactured whips, but they were mostly to control crowds during riots and even then, they were rarely used. Even he, who was trained in the use of most weapons, was unfamiliar with the way of handling such a thing. She also hadn't fully mastered the metallic whip, but her proficiency was good enough for it to be a problem.

Instantly, Stormbringer was put on the defensive as he had to be mindful of the cracking of the whip coming from one side and the retractable blade slashing the air from the other. He parried a particularly tricky blow from Ven but felt a burning sensation on his arm that almost made him drop his weapon.

Ven's whip had left a large mark on the Holy Knight's arm. She even managed to draw some blood due to the sheer speed behind her whip. It had come so fast that Stormbringer realized that she was using a meagre amount of her gust augmentation to boost the power behind her whip. Since she used very little of it, her augmentation required almost no charging time and had little to no backlash on her body.

Stormbringer retreated a few steps back to halt Ven in her assault, but she followed relentlessly and offered him no respite. Even though Ven wasn't used to wielded her weapons in such a manner, her augmentation allowed her whip to become a much deadlier implement.

Stormbringer and her exchanged a few moves which resulted in the former gaining a few minor injuries, with wounds on his chest bloodying his tattered clothes.

While Ven was facing the electricity-wielding Holy Knight, Bel was squaring off against The Lion. The two of them gazed at each other for merely an instant before they charged at the other's throat. Bel's oversized sword violently clashed against The Lion's shield and sparks flew out.

The Holy Knight braced himself for the impact, but the strength of the blow nearly lifted him off the ground. Luckily, he was able to withstand it, and with his shield before him, he swung his sword towards Bel's legs.

Bel quickly used his monstrous strength to combat the inertia keeping his sword locked on his opponent's shield and parried the coming blow. He lifted his weapon, flinging away The Lion sword in the process, and brought it down on more.

The Lion still had his shield up, and he was able to soak up the attack without being staggered. He lifted his shield in an effort to distance Bel sword from his own, to give himself a window of attack. His tactic succeeded, but Bel saw through his scheme, and he managed to dodge at the last moment.

The two men then proceeded to exchange a few blows, each more ferocious than the last. A thin layer of sweat coated both of their brows, and Bel knew that this status quo couldn't last much longer.

If the two of them continued to exchange hit like this, it was more than likely that a winner wouldn't be determined anytime soon. Such an outcome was something that The Lion was very willing to see, as it would either allow his comrades to finish the fight or some reinforcements to come to their rescue.

However, Bel needed to end this as soon as possible, so he made a difficult decision. It would put his life, and the life of his two companions in danger, but it was the only solution he saw to his conundrum.

Unwilling to waste any more time now that he had made his mind, Bel retreated a few steps and fished a syringe from his vest. Without waiting for The Lion's reaction, he swiftly inserted it in his arm and injected the liquid inside.

The liquid immediately flowed through his veins and in an instant, veins throughout Bel's whole body started throbbing violently. A sharp and burning pain filled him, and he couldn't contain a primal howl filled with suffering and violence.

Amon, who was still facing The Undying, couldn't help but feel his face drop when he heard that scream. In that instant, he knew that Bel had injected himself with the drug that would trigger his enhancement. Now that things had developed to this point, he couldn't hold back either. He grabbed one of the knives he kept in his vest and clenched it strongly.

Bel's face had become a slight shade of red, and his eyes were completely bloodshot. The Lion sensed the change in him and cast away his hesitation. If he didn't take out his opponent right away, he felt like he might never have the chance to do so. Sadly for him, he was a tad too slow, and Bel had already taken the initiative to attack him.

Before he took the drug, Bel was already wielding his weapon with relative ease, but now it seemed like a paperweight in his hands. He was swinging it wildly, and all the technique he had exhibited before was gone. Replacing it was pure savagery and power.

The Lion attempted to block the blow coming his way, but when the oversized sword made contact with his shield, he felt something crack in his arm, and he forced to take a few steps back to keep his balance.

Bel seemed in a trance as he continued his barrage of nonsensical attacks. Sometime, his sword would clash violently with the ground as he didn't give a single thought to his method of attack. The Lion's eyes almost flew out their sockets when he saw the deep gash left on the pavement when Bel hit it. If he were hit directly without the protection of his shield, he would probably die on the spot.

Bel's reasoning already flew out of the window. All he could see were victims waiting to be mowed down. His crumbling mind was violently craving the metallic taste of blood. With a disturbing shriek, Bel caught up with the retreating Lion, and he once more lifted his blade.

Filled with desperation, The Lion followed the only glimmer of hope he could see and wholly abandoned his shield and dashed towards Stormbringer.